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Saturday, October 12, 2013

Review: Berman, Järvi deliver stunning world premiere performance

Cincinnati.com
Janelle Gelfand
11/10/2013

Violinist Tatiana Berman, founding director of the Constella
Festival of Music and Fine Arts, performed at Memorial Hall on Thursday
night as soloist in a world premiere violin concerto with Paavo Jarvi
conducting. / The Enquirer/ Liz Dufour

It’s no mean feat to direct a music festival and also star as the soloist in a world premiere performance.But
multi-tasking violinist Tatiana Berman, who is also founding director
of the Constella Festival of Music and Fine Arts, delivered impressively
in both areas in Thursday’s festival program entitled “Queen City
Connections.”Indeed,
there were multiple Queen City connections in play. Returning to
conduct was Paavo Järvi, music director laureate of the Cincinnati
Symphony Orchestra, and Berman’s former husband.Filling
every inch of Memorial Hall’s stage, the chamber-sized orchestra
included a number of members of the Cincinnati Symphony. And the
collaborating composer, Charles Coleman, has strong ties to the
Cincinnati Symphony, which has premiered and recorded several of his
pieces.Järvi’s
program included Stravinsky’s ballet score “Apollon Musagète” and
Mozart’s Symphony No. 33 in B-flat Major, K. 319. The main event,
Berman’s premiere of Coleman’s Violin Concerto, came last.It
was worth the wait. Coleman, born in New York in 1968, writes in a
style that is vibrant and urban – it is music of today. His substantial,
three-movement Violin Concerto combined minimalist techniques (the
repetition of motives and rhythms) and a romantic gift for melody.The
piece was instantly appealing. The first movement opened with a long,
sinuous melody for the violin in a duet with a cymbal. It evolved into a
palette that was bright and busy, with bubbling winds set against
glowing orchestral textures. Berman crouched as she tackled its soaring,
angular themes with a seamless, lyrical tone.The
slow movement was atmospheric, with soulful themes for the violin and
lush orchestral accompaniment. Its ebb and flow included a brief nod to
jazz, and a Mozart-like wind ensemble. As the orchestra played a
sustained river of sound, the violinist’s tones floated above. A
captivating clarinet solo (Jonathan Gunn) had the last word.The
finale was an edgy perpetual motion, with the violinist interjecting
both long melodies and rapid figures. Järvi and the musicians supported
the soloist well, although here, perhaps due to the hall’s boomy
acoustics, the violinist didn’t project as well.
Berman’s playing was top-notch, and she ended with a flourish. As the
crowd stood for an enthusiastic reception, the couple’s two little
daughters delivered bouquets to their parents.Järvi
opened with Stravinsky’s rarely-played, neo-classical “Apollon
Musagète” (Apollo, leader of the Muses), a ballet in two scenes for
strings.Written
for the impresario Diaghilev in 1928 (Järvi led the 1947 revision), it
is basically a suite of dances. Its movements are variations for three
muses, framed with variations for Apollo and ending with a delicate pas
de deux.It was by
turns austere and lush, and there were many stunning moments.
Concertmaster Anna Reider performed an elegiac solo with immense beauty
of tone, and string sonorities were rich. Järvi found character in each
of its movements, and the musicians responded with terrific playing.That
sense of discovery continued in the Mozart, notable for its momentum,
lightness and detail given to every phrase. Nothing was predictable, and
even though this was a “pick-up” orchestra, Järvi knew just how to
bring out the best in his players.Downstairs
at Memorial Hall, the Constella event included a casually displayed
exhibition of art by pop artist Andrew VanSickle, outsider artist The
Rev. Howard Finster and celebrity photographer Gary Lee Boas.The Constella Festival continues through Nov. 7. Information: 513-621-2787, www.constellafestival.org.
http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20131011/ENT03/310110114/Review-Berman-J-rvi-deliver-stunning-world-premiere?nclick_check=1